Rosso Tragedia
by DuesCraw
Summary: 'The leaves know when fall is coming...'. Everybody knows what the war means, yet nobody is ever prepared for it. Killing the enemy might be easy enough, but when the enemy gets blurred, when the light becomes the shadow, when everybody only really fights for himself ... What is left then? Fuuin!Naruto. II shinobi war AU.
1. Chapter 1

**CH.1**

* * *

Konohagakure no stato outskirts,

II Shinobi war, early years.

The stars looked amazing. They always did.  
They were so far away, so mysterious... yet they shined bright, almost mocking whoever had the time to look at them.  
When he was younger he used to believe that for every person in the world, a new star would appear in the sky, its light fueled by the untouchable energy of dreams, love, hardships, accomplishments…  
He really wanted to keep believing.  
But the stars kept quiet, far away from the pitiful human reality. People died, dreams shattered, nothing changed… bar the stars, they were always the same.  
That is why he stopped believing. The stars didn't care about him.

''Uzumaki-san, we are ready to move.''

He nodded softly, his blue eyes firm on the sprinkled sky. The konoha ANBU waited silently for the Uzumaki, the quiet atmosphere tinged in a not so subtle hue of eagerness.  
He sighed while getting up from the flat rock he had been sitting on, his crimson hair hanging messily just below his eyes.  
He should cut them. Or maybe not.  
Since Uzu had assigned him this mission, his priorities changed greatly along with his goals… If he still had any. He should have one.  
He had been a ninja since he was able to hold a kunai, after all. In just 15 years of life, he had become the elite of his village, along with flattering yet dangerous mentions in several bingo books. He had strived for his village safety unquestionably, only to be given to Konoha in order to become the next jinchuuriki of the famed nine tails demon. The village elders tried to sugarcoat the whole thing, talking about ensuring the village safety by siding with Konoha, but he knew better. He was sold like a weapon, he held no real value apart from his ninja curriculum.  
Anyhow, the village safety was still his priority, he would do anything in his powers to ensure a peaceful life in Uzu. He owned little Kushina that much.  
He was still lost in his thoughts as he jumped from branch to branch, following the three konoha operatives quietly.

''We are here.''

Naruto's eyes focused immediately on the tiny cave entrance, barely concealed by the tall evergreen trees that populated the majority of Hi No Kuni.  
Waiting under the dim light of the moon he recognized immediately the silky white kage robes, wrapped around who was arguably one of the most powerful shinobi to ever perform in kami's realm.  
The Shinobi No Kami himself, Hiruzen Sarutobi.  
His stiff and regal body posture was somewhat eased by the gentle look in his steely gray eyes.  
 _'Guilt',_ Naruto thought bitterly. How horribly wonderful the reality of a shinobi really was. A seemingly endless amount of power restricted behind the bars of human imperfection. How frustrating really was, to have wings... in a world with no gravity. He often wondered whether there where no shinobi, would the world be different then? Probably not.

''Naruto-san, a pleasure finally meeting you in person… Even under these _unfortunate circumstances_.''

The Hokage's ashy voice brought him back to reality.

''This is a dire situation indeed. I would like to proceed with the ritual as soon as possible... if it's not a problem, Hokage sama.''

He did not want to get stuck in troublesome conversations with powerful shinobi. Konoha people were known for their silver tongue and charisma.

''I see. I do believe my student Jiraiya will arrive shortly, he is going to be the one working on the ritual. Mito-sama made sure everything will be going as smoothly as planned.''

Naruto nodded, but his mind was elsewhere. He was about to indirectly kill one of the greatest ninja his clan ever raised. Mito Uzumaki, wife of the late Shodaime Hokage and arguably the strongest kunoichi ever known to the elemental nations. He didn't know the woman personally, but he couldn't help but to feel sorry for somebody that, in all likes, was forced to a life she didn't choose.  
He hated this feeling. That warm idealism deep inside him, the very same that got him dismissed from the Uzushiokagure black ops forces. Was it Kushina's fult? Or Was it Kushina's merit?  
He didn't know. Did he want to know? He shamefully envied the emotionless killing machines the Hidden villages were able to create, everything would have been way easier if he was like that..  
He shook his head. He was probably too young to even grasp the meaning of life. Many kids his age were still in the academy after all.  
A loud clacking noise nearby put him immediately on high alert, his standard tanto already pointed were a small cloud of smoke was obscuring a tall man silhouette. He glanced sideways at the hokage who was… face-palming?

''WHERE THE SHADOW CONSUME THE LIGHT…''

A loud booming voice bellowed behind the smoke.

''WHERE THE EVIL SWINGS ITS BLADE…''

Naruto for the sake of his life couldn't figure out where the low whispered chorus following the loud voice was coming from.

''WHERE THE WOME-''

A sudden huge fireball cut through the seemingly endless amount of mist, followed immediately by a slightly feminine scream of pain.  
The hokage's hand was still in position for the katon jutsu, his face twitching in annoyance.

''Jiraiya cut the crap, this is not the time for your antics.''

 _'Jiraiya?'_ Thought Naruto in confusion. The worldwide famous A-ranked toad summoner Jiraiya just screamed like a schoolgirl?  
Fairly enough, from the now gone cloud of smoke, a tall white haired man in his early twenties slowly walked out, his standard konoha jounin attire gleaming under a non-existent light. His face wore a proud smirk, almost as if the Katon justu from before never happened in the first place.

''I wouldn't be so harsh sensei, after all, I have just completed the super _secret_ paradise mission… I'm sure you would like to check the _reports.._ ''

The hokage stiffened immediately, his eyes narrowing noticeably.  
Naruto watched carefully as the two got close to each other, whispering rapidly. It must have been a really important mission, the red-haired assumed. He noticed Jiraiya sliding something akin to a book inside the wide pockets of the hokage cotton white robes.

.

.

Was that a perverted giggle?

Naruto scoffed, he was already going crazy.  
Not even a blink later Jiraiya was in front of him, seizing him up and down while stroking his chin in meditation. He heard rumors about the white haired ninja before him, but now Naruto was absolutely sure… He really was an S-ranked idiot.  
Could it be a self-made defense mechanism? Something to shield away from the darkness that always lingered the battlefield, or maybe-

''Look at this Sarutobi-sensei, we asked for an Uzu-maki and they gave us an Uzu-Gaki.''

Nope. He was an idiot.  
While the fuming red-haired boy was thinking how to kill the laughing shinobi without diplomatic consequences, the hokage busted his student in the head, flooring him immediately.

''You should know very well that age doesn't matter in the shinobi world... _unfortunately_ … _''_

 _'Unfortunately',_ Naruto repeated in his mind bitterly. Ever since he dropped out from the Uzu black ops everybody started treating him like he was some victim of war, a young man deprived of his childhood… Fools. He was sick of the people's hypocrisy.

''Hokage-sama.''

All three of them turned towards the source of the voice, where a tall man with exotic silver hair and an elderly looking woman were passively waiting to be acknowledged.  
Naruto recognized the two immediately.  
The tall man in a slightly lighter colored jounin attire had one hell of a reputation after all. Sakumo Hatake, also know as the white fang of Konoha. The only Konoha shinobi of its generation to reach an S-rank mentioning, yet. Walking calmly next to the almost living legend was the very same Mito Uzumaki, her elegance not lost to old age. Her eyes were fixed on Naruto. Those narrow dark purple orbs almost gleamed behind the crinkled dry skin of her cheekbones. They looked so much like the Uzukage's that Naruto was unable to lower his gaze. The raw knowledge those eyes seemed to hold was somehow physically weighting on his shoulders, he felt so outclassed that even remembering his own name felt like a challenge. She was using the taller man right arm for support, as if the worldwide known killer beside her was nothing but her little nephew. While part of his mind was stuck, he wondered if he would be able to live long enough to carry this kind of attitude even while walking to his deathbed.

Probably not.

Before even reaching the Hokage she left her grip on Hatake's biceps, slowing making her way to the younger red-head. He could see her clearer now. Every single imperfection of the skin brought by the passing years, every single white hair of the sparse hair bun that was said to be a breathtaking sight back in the past. Her chin was high, as even in her soon to be cemetery she was in control of the situation.  
Naruto was absolutely sure not even with his trusted oni-mask on he would be able to intimidate the woman before him.  
And then she spoke.

''The leafs know when fall is coming. They try to hide their color, hoping that by leaving the beauty they always cherished the ground wouldn't want to claim their corpse. They decays, They get corrupted, old… Evil. In the end, the very same tree that gave them life becomes sick of them, so are they unwilling to accept change. The tree kills the leafs, for better, younger ones are going to replace them. You will do fine remembering this, Naruto.''

Not even a blink later she was back at the side of the silver haired shinobi, smiling politely to the Hokage and his student.  
Did it really happen?  
Not a single one of the monstrous shinobi around him seemed to be aware of the conversation, excluding immediately the possibility of a genjutsu.  
Naruto's clever mind was spinning, either he was really going crazy or the older woman really did that just by manifesting part of her chakra.  
Both possibilities were equally terrifying.  
What was all of that supposed to mean? What leafs had to do whit him? The only leaf in his life was…

''Naruto-kun, why don't you come here meeting Mito-sama, she was really anxious to finally be able to meet you in person.''

''Hai, Hokage-sama.''

He got closer to the konoha group, bowing deeply once he was in front of the older woman. He was sweating.

''Mito-sama.''

She chuckled lightly, her sudden grandmotherly attitude a glaring disagreement from her previous self.

''It is nice to know youngster this days still have some manners… Jiraiya-kun, maybe you could learn a thing or two from young Naruto here.''

Despite himself, he felt a well deserved smirk tugging at his lips. He decided that getting on the white haired oaf's nerves could become an enjoyable time-killer for the time being.  
After Jirayia sulked next to an amused Sakumo, the whole group wordlessly decided to enter the illuminated cave, where a seemingly endless amount of seals covered the polished rock.  
He only managed to exchange few more pleasantries with the older Uzumaki woman. It almost felt like everything he needed to know from her had already been said. However, behind that warm smile of her, he could recognize several hidden meanings, meanings that only somebody used to the stoical Uzumaki nobility could identify. Her smiles to the konoha shinobi were forced, all of them.  
She would stiffen occasionally, ever so slightly. Hidden anger, resentment, distrust…

Sadness.

Before even realizing it, he was laying on the cold unforgiving stone. All around him medics and shinobi of all sorts flooded the room.  
The Hokage said something to him. He didn't listen.  
They were blurred, all of them. His mind and soul was focused on her. She didn't need to say anything.

She became blurred too, but the message was clear.

Don't trust a single one of them.


	2. Chapter 2

**CH.2**

* * *

His eyes were open. Was he floating? It sure felt like it.

The roof was dark. He could only tell it was a roof by the soft azure hue that outlined the vertical walls holding it.

Why wasn't he wet? How did he even know he wasn't wet?

He was walking now. When did he get up?

The hue was the only thing guiding him. He could barely see his feet.

He tried to touch the darkness around him, he couldn't.

He wasn't afraid, strangely. It felt so natural, almost as if it was… His world?

A wooden door.

It wasn't there before.

He heard… something from behind the door.

Nobody except him should be here. He didn't know why, he just knew. This place was his and only his… somehow.

He opened it. There were no walls anymore.

Everything was a dark blue now, it reminded him of the ocean.

He quite liked the ocean.

He looked up. Where was he looking before?

He stumbled back. He fell. On the floor? Which floor…?

It didn't matter.

No more than five or six steps in front of him, a single, round reddish orb was floating in the darkness, it was slit in the middle, as if….

It blinked.

Everything lightened up in a brighter blue, an amazing crescendo of clearness worthy of the flashiest stage.

Everything had a blue tinge but its… fur was completely orange while black intervals outlined its fox-like features. It was big. Huge. Hard to comprehend.

It was right in front of him, no restrictions whatsoever. It was amused. Or angry. Or hungry…

It was hard to tell and Naruto couldn't help but to be frozen, staring at the creature.

Just its presence was suffocating. Even the seemingly endless ocean around him got tight, bending at the will of the enormous creature in front of him.

He breathed out in his direction, Naruto's black cloak flapped madly behind him.

''Are you afraid, human?''

Its feral grin didn't move an inch, but the deep ancient voice spoke clearly through the surrounding ocean.

Was he afraid? Maybe.

He didn't know if he ever felt fear before, he had been nervous, eager, anxious… But afraid? He didn't really know.

''I don't know, should I?''

He, yes, Naruto decided it was definitely a He, breathed out again. Was he not expecting his answer?

''I've killed many of your brethren in my long life, I suppose that's something you should fear.''

In a sudden moment of clarity, he realized his first interaction with the famed bloodthirsty nine-tailed demon had been way more civil than expected.

''I did kill many of my brethren too, does that make you fear me?''

Naruto had trouble staying on his feet as the enormous beast laughed loudly, his tails swinging rapidly behind him.

''You are interesting, human. I will make sure to eat you last when I finally get rid of this annoying seal.''

Meh. That didn't sound very nice.

''I don't think that is gonna happen anytime soon.''

Now Naruto was sure he looked angry.

''Listen up, you puny human... my essence is in your body now. I'll be there when your body is weak, I'll be there when your feeble mind will finally collapse, I'll be there when the Shinigami itself will be eating your soul… In that very moment, I will get free from this forsaken cage and I will stomp on the bones of your pathetic race. You heard me human!?''

Strangely enough, that didn't sound like a demon at all. Naruto was no expert, but he was fairly sure demons didn't hold grudges.

He sounded more like a prisoner, actually. The Kyuubi was…

''...more like us than I thought.''

His eyes narrowed dangerously, did he said that out loud?

''It seems our time is finished, human.''

The blue ocean around him started to ripple, as the creature's features become wavier and wavier.

Naruto didn't know how to classify their first encounter, but one thing was sure for the both of them…

 _'We will meet again…'_

 **LINEBREAKER**

 **Konohakagure No Stato, ANBU headquarters,**

 **II Shinobi war, early years.**

* * *

He woke up quietly, his blue eyes were probably already open when the conscious part of his mind started working.

He was staring at the roof once again. It was a real one this time. He couldn't quite identify the color, somewhere between yellow and cream, he supposed.

There was another person in the room. He knew the person was there and the person knew Naruto was aware of it.

''What color do you think the roof is?''

He heard the shifting of fabric, probably because of the other person's neck turning towards the roof.

''Ocher, maybe?''

He hummed in agreement. Naruto decided he liked whoever this man was. Many people in this kind of situation would have just been confused at the question. That is why he asked the question before looking at him. Looking was a different way of perceiving people.

''Are we in a hurry?''

He heard the fabric moving again. Naruto felt his eyes on him.

''Most likely. It doesn't matter much, I want to talk you in private and nobody will be questioning my report anyway.''

He turned his head slowly. On a plain looking wooden chair sat comfortably the Konoha White Fang himself, his face holding a tiny sincere smile. It was so natural that Naruto wondered whether it was stuck permanently on his face. His silver hair seemed almost white under the bright light of the room, he looked younger than he did in the forest. Naruto assumed the man was in his late twenties.

He was staring at the roof again. The older man took it as a clue to start talking.

''The Hokage, yesterday, listed you as a Tokubetsu Jonin, to be placed under my jurisdiction for the following year. All you needed to know was that our talents seem to compliment each other…''

Well, that surely smelt like bullshit.

He decided to keep quiet. He wanted to know what kind of person his… _sensei_ was.

He started talking again, knowing that the redhead attention was sorely on him.

''…That, of course, is nothing but a sad attempt to manipulate you… You see, our war council decided it was the safest course of action to label you as a-''

''Flight risk.''

Of course they would. He didn't blame their reasoning, he was actually satisfied everybody seemed to have underestimated him. They though the most dangerous things he could manage were going on a wild rampage or running away from them. Fools.

Keeping the enemy close didn't always work, after all.

''...Exactly. What are your thoughts on that?''

''I think it is reasonable. What confuses me, however, it is why are you telling me this. Are you not going against the higher-ups or something?''

He laughed quietly. Naruto noticed in morbid fascination how the skin around his eyes bent slightly, showing how often the man's smile reached his eyes. He didn't really fit the S-rank shinobi persona the redhead had in mind. He wondered if his own skin would ever bend like that.

Probably not.

Little Kushina's would. His eyes hardened. He will make sure it would.

''Laws are important in our world. They are not a natural phenomenon, they are created by the common morality of a certain group of people. They are not right nor they are wrong, they are a compromise of sorts. They mitigate people's individuality, so that the society, as a unified concept, is able to advance at much quicker pace than a single man could...''

Naruto was listening to the man words in an awed silence. Back in Uzu, everything had a way more scientific approach to it. It all revolved around matrices, combinations, practical reasoning…

He, on the other hand, often devolved in humanistic issues, which were usually reprimanded by his superiors. Pointless philosophy, they said.

''…However, laws by themselves are nothing but lines written a long time ago. As the society changes, it should be in our best interest to modify our morality as well. Unfortunately this does not happen. People are so afraid of losing their identity that they refuse the easier path, often preferring pointless machinations such as war and discrimination. We are all guilty, myself included. I am an S-ranked shinobi, the best of the best, and yet… I'm too weak. The most I find myself able to is protecting my precious people, even if, by doing that, I hurt someone's else precious people. My point is… You and I are going to war together. I refuse to put my life in the hands of somebody that doesn't trust me. Laws don't exist on the battlefield. What I'm asking is: if I fight for your survival, will you be doing the same for me?''

The silver-haired man was looking at him straight in the eyes now. His look was firm yet ever so gentle, it was hard not to say yes to whatever he asked. Mito's words still reverberated in his mind. Should he trust this man? All of this could be a very sophisticated plan to brainwash him into loyalty… But the man did have a point. They were going to rely on each other in life-threatening situations and Naruto decided that trusting the man was a reasonable risk, as long as he kept his head on his shoulders.

''I do believe we have an agreement Hatake-san, my talents are at your disposal.''

His posture relaxed even more, his eyes closing amicably. Naruto could have guessed he was smiling even if the lower part of his face had been covered. It was… refreshing, compared to the stoney faces he was used to.

''Very well then, I'm really curious what the youngest ninja in the bingo book is capable of. I would say it's time for us to meet the rest of our team… Try to keep up with me, if you can.''

Not a second later he disappeared in a quick shunshin. Naruto only smirked, as he rushed for the older man.

It wouldn't hurt to get some allies along the road, would it?

 **BREAKLINER**

Man, he was fast.

Naruto only managed to find the training ground the older man was heading to because of the chakra recording seal he had on the back of his neck. It was one of his first creations. Whenever somebody close to him used chakra, his _sensei_ shunshin in this case, the seal would hold onto its signature for a few minutes, allowing him a better reception of the energy released.

It was just one of the many seals that covered his body.

The silver-haired man wasn't the only one there. He first took notice of a short brown haired boy, probably a couple years younger than him. He was sporting a wide smile, his legs were bouncing excitedly for some unknown reason. Next to him, a really pretty girl with raven black hair was standing there, looking excited as well, even if she kept a calmer demeanor. She couldn't be any younger than himself.

''It seems our fourth member has finally arrived. I suppose it took you this long because you stopped looking around the village… Konoha is really pretty when the sun is out, I'd give you that.''

He felt a thick mark forming on the pale skin of his forehead. Was he mocking him!?

He will take great pleasure in wiping that smirk off the older man's face.

''I know you!''

Everybody turned towards the pretty girl, who seemed to shy away from the sudden attention

''I-I mean I saw you on my father's bingo book..''

Naruto absentmindedly noted that her black hair seemed to blend in an almost dark bluish color under the occasional ray of sunlight passing through the thick foliage.

He met her big charcoal pupils.

He was pretty sure she was an Uchiha. He saw plenty of them during his joint missions with Konoha, but she didn't seem to hold the usual air of superiority that characterized her clan. An Uchiha that shied away from attention? That sure was unheard of.

Pushing aside the urge to keep looking into her eyes, he took notice of the younger brown-haired boy, who had come a little too close to him.

''In the bingo book? You have to be at least a B-rank ninja to be mentioned there...How old are you?''

This kid was really loud.

''15.''

.

.

''WHAAAAAAT!? YOU ARE JUST TWO YEARS OLDER THAN ME, HOW DID-''

He used one of his most precious techniques. He had used it on several occasions. Little Kushina's outbursts were a common occurrence, after all. He liked to call it the **'SILENCER!** _'._

The younger kid stumbled back a couple of feet, while his right hand immediately went on his forehead, massaging the spot Naruto's stone like fingers hit with deadly precision.

''You are too loud.''

The pretty girl giggled in her hand, while the boy's gray eyes glared heatedly at him.

''Come on now boys, you should keep your energies for later, you both will need that. Why don't we make a proper introduction of ourselves, how's that sound?''

A few seconds later, the three of them were seated on a fallen log, in front of them Hatake was looking at them with that tiny smile of his. The pretty girl was seated beside him, stealing quick side glances in his direction. He didn't mind, he found her presence quite relaxing, somehow.

''Naruto, since you are the newest member of our village, why don't you start? Tell us something about yourself.''

He nodded mutely, he was used to give short reports about his skill set.

''Naruto Uzumaki, 15, 5'8.11. I specialize in Fuuinjutsu, both in close and long range. I don't use any ninjutsu bar the minimum and I'd rather not engage taijutsu battles. I have the standard Uzumaki Kenjutsu to make up for that. I have no qualms about teamwork but I don't like taking the leading role unless it is necessary.''

He mentally nodded, pleased with himself. Quick and efficient, as always.

His introduction was flawless. That's why he didn't know where the confused stares of his… _teammates_ were coming from.

''That's very nice to know, Naruto, but I was thinking about more… personal information, you know? Likes, dislikes, dreams… that sort of things.''

''Oh.''

The pretty girl giggled again beside him.

Personal information? What for? These Konoha people were really confusing. He shamefully admitted to himself that gathering things to say in that regard was harder than he thought.

''Well, uhm… I would say I like writing and, uhm… drawing, I guess…''

Why was it so hard? He was even known in Uzu for his quick remarks… Why was something so trivial bothering him this much?

Maybe because no one ever asked.

He felt the pretty girl's eyes on him. He also felt her gentle smile. It encouraged him.

''…My dream is… to understand the world. Maybe then I would know what to do with my life.''

He said the last part out loud, but it was more for himself than anything. It sounded like a nice dream. He liked the strong feelings that were involved while fighting, but he was positive that a calmer, easier life would be much better.

''Very good, Naruto. You, shortie, you are next.''

The brown-haired boy grumbled quietly something about bullies.

''My name is Nawaki Senju! I love eating and training… and my big sister Tsunade! My dream is to become the greatest Hokage of all time! I don't like grumpy people and I hate who treat me differently just because of who my grandfather was!''

Naruto eyebrow rose in surprise. The little shrimp was a Senju, and if people knew about his grandfather then, in all likes, he was the nephew of the Shodaime Hokage himself.

Mito's nephew as well.

He wondered whether the woman was attached sentimentally to the young boy. She made clear with her actions that her relationship with the village was strained at most, but if she cared for her nephew… Then Naruto would work to keep the shrimp alive. He felt like he owned the woman that much.

He will need to talk to Nawaki in private.

''My name is Mikoto Uchiha…''

He whipped his head a little too quickly. He was strangely interested in what the girl had to say.

''…I like cooking and talking to people. I don't like stereotypes on female kunoichi and perverts, my dream for the future is to become the head of the Uchiha clan so that this pointless feud between us and the village can finally come to an end.''

She looked at him briefly, smiling, upon seeing his supportive and impressed face. He was aware of the tension between the Uchiha and the village following the defection of the famed Madara Uchiha. The somewhat distrustful reign of the second Hokage didn't help with the situation either.

Aiming to be clan head might have been the dream of many Uchiha, but using such power to finally end a conflict of such proportion was surely a noble pursuit.

However, it was also true that many leaders prophesied peace in order to gain power. The fact that they were on the verge of another full-scale war proved that.

He decided to give this Mikoto the benefit of the doubt, he will have plenty of time to get to know how pure her intentions really were.

Did he actually...looked forward to that?

Talking about good first impressions…

''What about you sensei?''

The silver-haired man rubbed the back of his head gently, his eyes smiling as usual.

''Well, my name is Sakumo Hatake. I like spending time with my family, especially with my little Kakashi… He will be two in a couple of months actually. I hope I will be able to be there for his birthday…''

Sadness. It was clear that Hatake didn't have much hope about that happening.

''… Anyway, I don't like power hungry people and abusers. My dream is assuring a peaceful future for my son.''

That is something he really believed in. Given the older man skills, he couldn't help but think that this Kakashi had a great shot to a conflict less life. Just the man presence made him feel like everything will be the way he wants to be.

''Now, enough with the pleasantries. It's time for me to test your abilities. You three need to come at me with everything you have or it won't be enough to even get near me. Show me what you got.''

Whit that, all three of them quickly jumped away from the man, only to regroup shortly after, deep in the forest. Nawaki, of course, was the first one of them to speak up.

''Ok listen up. You two need to distract him from the sides, meanwhile, I'll be surprising him from behind and pucker punch him straight to the Hokage's tower. How's that sounds?''

Mikoto laughed quietly at the energetic boy's antics. He almost laughed too, if his reputation hadn't been on the line. He was sure the boy was indeed able to hit very hard, it was a well know trait of the Senju clan, after all. But they weren't facing just some random ninja, they were fighting the elite of the elite. Hatake probably wouldn't even need to move to counter such a basic tactic.

''That is not gonna work, shortie.''

Said shorty growled at him menacingly. He couldn't help it.

''And what the oh so great tomato-sama say we do, then?''

.

.

''Tomato-sama? Really? That's the best thing you could come up with?''

The brown-haired boy had the decency to blush at the rather lame insult.

''Always better than shortie…'' He muttered quietly.

Naruto scoffed loudly, before turning to the only female of the group. Her eyebrows were knitted together in thought. He had already something in mind, but he wanted to test the girl's decision-making abilities.

''Let's hear what Mikoto has to say. I'm sure she already has some kind of plan in mind, am I wrong?''

She looked at him strangely. Wasn't she used to be in charge?

''Well, Sakumo-sensei is probably an all-around shinobi, so I doubt taijutsu maneuvers will be that much effective on him.''

He didn't need to turn to know how much Nawaki was silently fuming at Mikoto's simple logic wrecking his idea.

''I say Naruto-san with his fuuinjutsu has the best chance to catch him off guard. Not many people in Konoha know more than the basics, after all. Nawaki and I will keep Sakumo-sensei on his toes, while Naruto should be at least able to land a hit or something.''

She spoke with so much confidence that the two other boys were caught off guard, not expecting such leadership from the quiet and peaceful looking girl from before. She suddenly becomes aware of her two teammates staring, her gaze shifted downwards immediately.

''I-I mean, if it's okay with you guys…'' She muttered quietly. He didn't know why she was embarrassed by her own display of logical thinking.

''I think it is a splendid idea, Mikoto.''

He had, of course, a way more complicated, almost bulletproof, idea in mind, but he was taught to encourage the lower ranks initiatives when they were worthy of notice. She beamed at him, her simple features shining under the filtered sunlight.

''Yeah, right. Of course, the pretty girl's idea is splendid…''

Mikoto frowned at him, wasn't he listening to her remark about downgrading female ninja?

Naruto didn't have to waste words on the boy. His **SILENCER!** quieted the young Senju immediately.

Without another word, he took his black cape off in a single swift motion, his sleeveless black shirt revealing the numerous seals inked on both his arms.

His teammates stared. It didn't matter, everybody did.

Even in Uzu, getting permanent seals connected to the chakra network wasn't a common occurrence. Being born with large enough reserves was easy enough in the Uzumaki clan, but the raw control one needed to have in order to avoid side effects was what really made him special.

He got all of them before he turned ten.

Getting them after that point was a risk he didn't feel comfortable taking.

''Ok, people. I have a big surprise for Hatake over there. Just keep him busy, I only need to touch him once.''

Whit a last nod, he shunshined away, leaving his teammates by themselves.

A few seconds later the two were sprinting towards their sensei, Mikoto's hands already sorting through hand seals. Nawaki, being the faster of the two, reached the silver-haired man first, his right arm cocked back for a powerful swing. The older ninja simply sidestepped, his arms still crossed in front of his chest. The young Senju reacted quickly, as his body twisted midair, releasing the pent-up force from the sprint in a quick rotating kick. His opponent once again switched his body weight on his left leg, gracefully pivoting away from the smaller boy. Nawaki just smirked, as he jumped high in the air as soon as his foot made contact with the grass underneath him.

 **''Katon: Gokakyu no Jutsu!''**

Where the boy was standing a second ago, a huge fireball covered the now empty space, seemingly leaving no room for Sakumo to dodge. The orange inferno released by Mikoto engulfed the whole area, as Nawaki landed softly by his teammate side.

''See? We didn't even need Tomato's help.'' He said quite smugly.

Mikoto highly doubted that.

Surely enough, she felt the urge to jump away, just a few inches before the older man's leg came sweeping from her left side.

Nawaki wasn't so lucky.

He barely had the time to raise his forearm in front of his face, as the kick rocketed him deep into the forest. Mikoto, now, was standing alone in front of her sensei, his arms still crossed.

Her fine hearing took notice of the subtle rustle of leaves coming from the direction her teammate had been launched to. It was time for the second round.

She closed her eyes.

When she looked again at her sensei, blazing red had substituted her previous charcoal black pupils, three tomoes swirled calmly in each one of her eyes.

She rushed at him much quicker than before, her body graciously coming to a sudden stop just below her sensei's guard. Her arm went forward towards his face, only to feint and twist her body as soon as the silver-haired man flexed his legs in order to dodge.

Now that he was unbalanced, she threw a powerful straight punch, aiming just below his ribs.

In an inhuman display of speed, her sensei grasped her moving wrist, just enough to use her own momentum and twirling her away from him.

She adjusted in mid-air, sliding with her toes on the muddy ground.

'' **Doton: Doryuusou!''**

From below Sakumo's feet, several spears purely made of rock spurted from the ground, forcing the Jonin to a vertical jump in the air, where Nawaki was already waiting to deliver a powerful hook from above. Screaming like a madman all the while.

''It's over, sensei!''

Once again, the older man dodged the powerful offense, letting Nawaki's speeding punch fly harmlessly beside him.

Sakumo cocked back his left arm, ready to deliver a game-ending blow to his student.

Just before his fist reached the younger boy, he disappeared in a puff of smoke, revealing a smirking Naruto instead.

Not expecting a reverse Kawarimi, he realized it was too late to stop his extending arm, which was immediately caught by Naruto's waiting grip, while several seals on the red-haired forearm lightened up in a warm yellowish light.

'' **Fuuinjutsu: Ugoki Houin!''**

From Sakumo's arm, a web-like matrix of seals extended rapidly through his whole body.

Once losing the vertical boost from the jump, they both descended towards the ground. Naruto landed gracefully on his feet, while Sakumo's motionless body hit the dirt like a sack of potatoes.

He was just starting to comprehend the fact that he took down an S-ranked shinobi when the older man's still form disappeared in a small cloud of smoke.

Before even realizing it had been a shadow clone, he felt the cold, sharp, steely side of his sensei's short sword on the left side of his neck.

''A movement restriction seal executed in such a short span of time, I must say it was really impressive.''

He closed his eyes in defeat while sighing deeply. Of course, it had been too easy to be true.

''When did you even substituted with a clone? I had been watching you since the beginning…''

His sensei swiftly removed the blade from his neck, chuckling softly all the while. Naruto was fairly ashamed of his performance. He hadn't been outclassed like this in a long time.

''That's the point Naruto, it was a clone since the beginning.''

Both his teammates got close to them, the bitterness from the resounding defeat very clear in their eyes. Nawaki also seemed to be still a little freaked out by the reverse substitution the red-head pulled off earlier.

All three of them were side by side now, all looking up in slight amazement at their superior.

''Don't be too hard on yourself, all of you. Defeat is an essential part of life. We all need to embrace it sometimes, for without loosing we wouldn't have the motivation to keep going forward. Today you all learned a very important rule of the shinobi world…''

His face was stone-like, as he looked into the eyes of every single member of the team. Gone was the laid back man from before. In front of them, they had the White Fang of Konoha, and he sure looked like the merciless ninja he was said to be.

''… Always, and I mean Always… Look underneath the underneath. Nothing is given in this world, you need to be flexible, you need to adapt... if you wanna survive.''

Naruto looked at Mikoto, who was once again standing beside him. She did look nervous.

''In three days time, we will be leaving for Kaze no Kuni for our first mission. Pack lightly, we will be able to gear up fully once we reach our troops on the border. We will meet at the gates, 7 a.m, sharp. Welcome aboard… Team Seven.''

He looked at his teammates. Their previous apprehension was completely gone, as their sensei's firm, energetic words riled them up quite nicely.

It was this kind of leadership Naruto had always lacked.

After a quick, grumpy goodbye from Nawaki and a nervous yet beautiful smile from Mikoto, only Hatake and himself were left on the training ground.

''Getting the hots for the Uchiha heiress, uh? She seems like a nice girl, I'll give you that.''

He didn't answer. He didn't even smile at the older man's attempted small talk. There was something that had been bothering him since his teammates introduced themselves.

''The Uchiha heiress. The youngest pure blooded Senju. And myself, the only Uzumaki under Konoha's corps and jinchuuriki of the nine tailed fox. It sure feels more than a coincidence to me. What is your village planning on doing, uh? They hope I will get buddy-buddy with the village's top-notch royalty? I accepted being considered a flight risk, but any further attempts at manipulating me will be not go unpunished, Hatake-san.''

He left calmly, not even sparing a side glance to the white-haired man. He didn't like when innocents people, such as Mikoto and Nawaki, were manipulated in order to get at him.

It was even worse when one of those innocent people's smile was stuck in his head.

The false vibes of peace and tranquility this village gave off were dangerous, he will need to be careful. Very careful.


	3. Chapter 3

**CH.3**

* * *

 **Tanigakure no Stato,**

 **II Shinobi war, early years.**

He woke up early, as usual. It was still dark outside.

Nawaki was still snoring loudly on the bed beside his.

They arrived at the village in the Land of Rivers yesterday evening, all of them too tired from the long travel to really do anything besides checking in the rooms they had been given.

The village hidden in the valleys. Now that Naruto was looking outside the window, he thought that the name was indeed a fitting one.

From the early morning azure background, he was able to make out the pointy outline of the steep mountains that circled the village. It was a really fascinating demonstration of the always so various displays nature was capable of. The mountains weren't really connected to each other. The one coming from the left side had their steep rocky slopes descend rapidly towards the valley, only to meet the parallel's ones on the right side of the village, creating a peculiar 'U' shape around the man-made structures.

The village, that was divided in two by a fairly wide river, was hidden in this natural cocoon of wilderness, giving off an overall sense of tranquility.

Tanigakure was a ninja village, but since the sparse population of Kawa no kuni, and thus the little need the country had for shinobi, they had been working on becoming a touristic location.

But it was wartime now. Each hole was a trench, after all.

Konoha, sensing the rapidly increasing tension between themselves and Sunakagure, had timely occupied the Land of Rivers, obtaining a strategical stronghold just at the border of the Land of Wind.

Suna had found itself lacking many important trafficking routes coming from the east, as the other bordering nations, such as Amekagure and Kusakagure, expressed their intentions of remaining neutral, avoiding trading deals with either Village.

Sunakagure's only supplier had become Iwakagure, that too resented Konoha's monopolization of the much richer resources coming from the eastern countries.

Needless to say, the land of Rivers had become the first real full-scale battleground. Teams from Konoha fended off joint platoons of Iwa and Suna shinobi, and while the formers were looking for a breach in the dangerous desert that separated them from the country's hidden village, the latter wanted them out of Kawa no Kuni, so that much needed resources such as drinkable water and wood would be easier to obtain.

He got out of the improvised barracks he and his team had been sleeping into.

The chilly mountainous air tingled on his skin, as the dimly illuminated streets accentuated the overall loneliness of the early morning hours.

He noticed a lonely figure seated on the roof of one of the tallest building around, he was unable to discern its features, as the darkness still reigned all around him.

His curiosity got the best of him, as he jumped easily next to the figure.

He recognized immediately Mikoto's long dark hair, that were swinging slightly on her back, carried by the gentle morning breeze.

She was already dressed up in the shinobi attire she left the village with.

Under a light, sleeveless, greyish body armor, which sported the Uchiha crest on its back, she had a soft pink, almost white, short kimono that reached her tights, while its sleeves were held at her elbow by two red strings. Tied at the belt of her black shorts she had a slim _laito,_ its scabbard ornated in various golden patterns. Her long, pale legs were covered by a black tight fabric, leaving only a narrow gap of showed skin on her left leg, just below her shorts.

Naruto was not ashamed to admit she looked beyond beautiful.

She was currently staring at the soon to be rising sun longingly, her hands busy in braiding part of her raven locks.

''You should be sleeping.''

She didn't react at first. He knew she was aware of his presence, he didn't expect anything less from an Uchiha, after all.

She then turned towards him, an inviting gentle smile so tiny that Naruto had a little trouble spotting in the dark. She shifted her weight ever so slightly, mutely inviting him to sit beside her.

He did.

''This is my first time outside the country, you know?''

She was once again looking at the horizon, her creamy colored skin reflected the slow but noticeable adjustment of the sky to the climbing sunlight.

''My father is the head of the Uchiha clan. I had always been the little princess everybody was afraid of breaking. They said everything was either too dangerous or too trivial for me. I was so prideful back then… Everybody treated me so differently that I started actually believing it, that I was superior, you know?''

He didn't know why she was telling him this. He supposed that, with him being a foreigner, she felt like she could talk to him without the numerous prejudices and hierarchies coming from Konoha's messed up social situation.

''… During my first mission outside the village, I was so full of myself that I completely disregarded teamwork and precautions. Why should the prodigy princess share the spotlights with some no-named peasants?''

She laughed bitterly at herself. Her eyes were looking down, reminiscing.

''… They all died. And it was all my fault. I only managed to survive because of my Sharingan, that had reached the third stage.''

Her words held so much emotion that he was afraid she would start crying any seconds. He hoped not. He wasn't very good in that kind of situations.

''My whole world shattered that day. I was so unsure and confused… I almost retired from ninja duty. I would have loved to, as well… But as an Uchiha princess, if I don't reach the Jonin status by 18, I will be given to one of the strongest Uchiha in marriage, and I would lose any hope of reaching the position of power I need to achieve my dream. So I kept going, and now there is this… _damned, useless_ war we need to fight and… and.. I'm so nervous and scared and-''

She was frantic, almost in tears. It really was strange seeing an Uchiha like this.

He put his hand on hers.

He always had trouble interacting with people, but he tried to be as aware as possible of other's displays of emotion, both from enemies and allies alike.

Paradoxically speaking, being socially aware of the world around you made you a better ninja. But it was easier to deal with the life of a shinobi when everything was covered by a blanket of apathy.

However, he lived in Uzu, where kids past 9 usually stopped showing emotions, somehow. He didn't have many opportunities to practice. Maybe he should get Kushina out of the village, she was too much of a positive ball of energy to be left at the village's mercy.

''Look… I'm not very good with words… or people in general. You know, where I come from everybody is always so serious that back when I was a kid, I thought somebody had killed all the village's cats…''

She laughed. Her eyes were moist and they were looking straight into his. But she laughed. He was glad.

''…What I'm trying to say it's that we are in this together. We are a Team, now. I'm smart enough to know that you are not a bad person. Everybody makes mistakes, but now you are not a girl by herself anymore. Your strength has to be mine's, and Nawaki's, and Hatake's. I think you can do it. Do you think you can do it?''

She looked at him. Long and deeply. She looked like she was searching for something on him, with those big wide charcoals of hers. She smiled soundlessly. The sun was now just halfway covered by the mountains around the village, and Naruto randomly thought that her thin lips were the same color of her kimono.

''…Even from what you said back at Konoha, I think you could make a great leader, you know?''

He scoffed amicably.

''Of course I could, I just don't want to.''

She laughed again, loudly this time. Her eyes closed and her head tilted back, breaking the somewhat rigid posture she kept usually. She looked more natural.

''Quite modest, aren't we?''

He said nothing else. Mainly because she had sighed deeply, resting her head on his shoulder while closing her eyes.

He was… _contempt_.

His distrustful side was always vigil, however.

His uncertain situation didn't really allow sentimental attachments, after all.

Even so, he couldn't bring himself to care about that at the moment.

His hand was still on hers.

They stayed like that for a few minutes, moving only upon hearing commotion in the street below.

Once jumping from the yellow colored building, they landed just beside a group of Konoha's ninja, who were backing away from a really angry looking woman.

''I already told you, I am a proud kunoichi of this village, not a backstreet whore!''

Surely enough, she was wearing a Tanigakure headband, the metal plate engraved with a flattened 'U' shape, the symbol of their village. She had dark long hair, even darker than Mikoto's, and her body was completely covered in a white poncho-like oversized outfit. Her facial structure was really accentuated on her tanned skin, a seemingly common trait among the inhabitants of this area.

Because of this, she did pull quite the terrifying glare.

The Konoha shinobi, noticing that people were watching, decided to abandon the area rapidly.

''Is everything okay, miss...?''

Mikoto, being the peaceful person that she was, approached the girl calmly, her eyes softly showing her pure intentions. The Tanigakure woman, that Naruto now noted couldn't be much younger than Hatake, kept her glare up for a few more seconds, before relaxing visibly upon the Uchiha's calming presence.

''Yu. My name is Yu… And yes I'm okay. You all Konoha ninja really don't know when to stop, do you…''

Naruto glanced again at the spot that was previously occupied by his… _comrades…_ bitterly. It was a common occurrence on war zones. Soldiers upon soldiers were stuck together, fighting for their life every day, alone form their homes and their families.

It wasn't right, but it happened.

A foreign country, where common men found themselves in a position of power, hungrily looking for opportunities to escape the conventions that usually held their desires in place when they were home.

Naruto always thought that war didn't change people. It was more of an awakening of humanity's primal instincts. Facing the possibility of death on such a daily basis made morals and restrictions look way more expendable.

It was natural. There was no right or wrong in nature, those concepts were created by people a long time ago.

Society and morals were an anomaly in the natural life circle, but Naruto liked to think that they elevated humans, somehow.

The line between a wild animal and a person was widely known, but ever so easy to cross.

''…Yes, I know not all of you are like that...I just... I guess all of this was to be expected, many of the village's kunoichi didn't waste time on happily complying with Konoha shinobi _requests_ , after all…''

Mikoto's hands were holding the older kunoichi's tightly, offering mute understanding and support.

''It is not a high price to pay, and I know I'm being unreasonable… Konoha freed us from the crushing monopoly Suna had on the Land of Rivers… but…''

''That's beside the point, Yu. Our body is the only thing we should have the liberty to control fully. If you don't want to do something, you shouldn't. There are surely other ways to show gratitude.''

He didn't know why, but he felt the need to say what he was thinking. Maybe his pride wanted to make sure people knew he didn't belong to Konoha's hypocrisy.

Yu offered him a small smile, while Mikoto was looking at him knowingly. He was sure she would be still pushing for this alleged _leadership_ she thought him capable of.

Suddenly, the rest of the team appeared on the scene. Well, Hatake appeared, Nawaki was more… _carried,_ let's say. His eyes were closed, and a disturbingly big bubble of air was moving on his left nostril. Somehow, he was already dressed in the same navy and gray colored outfit he had the first time they met in the forest.

''Oh, fantastic. You already met our guest teammates for today's mission, this sure is time-saving.''

Hatake was smiling politely at the three of them. However, Naruto noticed a slight change in the man's smile when reaching Yu's eyes. It was still a tiny smile, but felt way more… _condescending,_ somehow. This was further proved by the woman's sudden interest on the unpaved floor of the village.

They had history.

And he had a wife. And a kid.

Naruto felt… _weird_ knowing that even Hatake had his weakness. He surely appeared as the perfect role model.

Even so, he won't say a thing about this. He didn't know the man and his life, it wasn't his place whatsoever. Hatake had it's flaw, he was human. This made Naruto wonder…

What was his?

 **REKAERBENIL**

 **Takami port,**

 **II Shinobi war, early years**

The had run the whole morning, arriving at the port city of Takumi a little before noon. Their whole group was standing around a small wooden table inside one of the houses offered by the fishermen of the city. The rain forests that populated the north side of the Land of Rivers had been quite the task to go through. Thankfully they had Yu with them, whose orientation skills were impeccable.

He had foregone his cloak a long time ago, the heavily humid weather was hard to take even with just his sleeveless black shirt on.

His Konoha headband felt weird on his exposed bicep.

A very detailed map of the border was sprayed on the wooden table, various villages and strategic points were circled in red. Their objective had been highlighted in a bright yellow color, it was right on the west side of the river banks.

''This is the _'Keimusho'._ It was a civilian prison before the war, but recently it has been used by Suna as a temporary one for enemy shinobi captured on the border. The majority of their troops had evacuated the place, as Konoha forces are gaining ground towards the land of wind. However, one of our main spies we had in Sunakagure had been captured near the Land of River, as he was about to rely top priority information to us. They still don't know that this person works for us, so the prison is gonna be poorly guarded until they move back towards Suna…''

Hatake paused. He breathed deeply while pinching the bridge of his nose. Almost faster than Naruto could follow, he twirled the stick he was using to point at the map straight towards Nawaki, who was once again sleeping soundly on a chair behind them. It nailed the young boy right on his forehead, pushing him back enough for the chair to fell over.

Nobody laughed. They couldn't. Hatake, since the first time they had been together, had always kept his usual tiny smile, not even once looking remotely angered.

He wasn't smiling now. His mouth was a straight line, while his eyes were lazily hanging half-lidded, completely void of emotion.

It was terrifying.

As casually as ever, he closed his eyes again, smiling again amicably at everyone, all the while releasing the huge amount of gravity his stare had managed to gather.

Mikoto breathed out heavily beside him.

''… As I was saying, our mission is to retrieve this person and to… _eliminate_ every possible witness. To the enemy's eyes, it must as appear as a random initiative against one of their bases. Is everything clear?''

Not a single word was uttered afterward. They were now on a tiny wooden motorless boat, navigating through the gentle course of the river. Hatake was sitting by himself, reading some kind of unnamed book, that looked suspiciously similar to the one Jiraiya had given the Hokage the night of his ritual. Mikoto was energetically chatting with the older kunoichi on the left side of the boat, and Nawaki was uncharacteristically quiet, gazing by himself the passing water.

He was standing beside him mutely. Waiting to see if the boy would say something to him. It was their first mission, and the boy didn't look mentally prepared for it. He was a risky factor for the mission if he kept this mentality.

''Naruto, I think you are, by all means, a cocky bastard. But you… seems to have the skill to back it up, so I'm gonna ask you a favor for this mission.''

He waited. Both of them were still looking towards the water.

''…Could you… you know… take care of the killing part for me? I have no trouble fighting them, but… killing in cold blood after they are defeated, it's just…''

''Cruel?''

Nawaki looked at the ground, ashamed. He was, after all, refusing the main reason shinobi existed in the first place. Naruto took out his _tanto_ from the scabbard on his back. He held it flat on both his hands.

''I might be cocky as you say, but do I look evil to you?''

The younger boy looked at him, running him up and down carefully.

''N-not really, but what-''

Naruto moved his left hand quickly, the blade of his sword a few centimeters from the boy's throat.

He didn't even have to ask the question again, the kid in front of him was frozen in fear.

He swiftly re-sheathed it on his back.

''I did kill a lot of people like this. It is actually the best way to do it, in my opinion. Not much blood, not much pain… It just happens…''

Nawaki was still looking at him.

''I will deal with the finishing blows, but don't get used to it.''

He got up calmly, not looking at the slightly shell-shocked boy beneath him. He could have scolded him for his unwillingness to kill, but he preferred not to peer-pressure him into his first kill. It needed to happen on the battlefield while fighting. Killing defeating opponents gave you way too much time to think about it.

He sat on the opposite side of the still chattering girls, and while his eyes closed immediately, he could still feel Hatake's attentive gaze behind that strange book of his.

 **LINECRACKER**

 **The 'Keimusho',**

 **II Shinobi war, early years.**

It was nighttime. The proximity to the river mitigated some of the typical desert thermal excursion. There were just the three of them now, as Yu had stayed behind, near the boat, assuring a quick escape for later. They were hidden behind the crest of a tall dune, the sparse vegetation around them allowed a perfect view of the plain, creamy colored building they were going to attack in a few minutes. Hatake had given them each a wide, hooded, milky white coat, in order to blend with the surrounding sand and now, he was handling plain white mask to his teammates. He refused mutely.

''I have mine.''

From a single storage seal on his forearm, a tiny cloud of smoke poofed into existence soundlessly.

Naruto had, now, in his hand, a bright red Oni mask, its devilish features contorted in a bloodthirsty grin, while the white porcelain teeth spurted sharply from its lips. On either side of its forehead, two long yellow horns stretched upwards, going a couple of inches over the mask upper edge. Hatake seemed the only one to recognize it immediately.

One of the famed Oni masks of the Uzumaki shrine said to be all cursed and deeply connected to the Shinigami's realm.

''That sure is a nice mask, Naruto, but we were aiming for a more…subtle approach.''

He scoffed loudly while calming nearing the mask to his face. Once it touched his face, it glowed a soft blue, signaling its connection to Naruto's chakra. All of his teammates unconsciously shifted slightly away from him, none of them looked at the deep black pools of the mask.

''This mask is able to release subtle pulses of chakra, acting as a subtle genjutsu on whoever focus on it. People say it will show your greatest fear if you look at it long enough. Plus, you said you were going to retrieve the prisoner while we acted as a distraction outside, this mask will make them believe I'm the leader. They won't suspect a fourth member of your caliber.''

Nawaki gulped loudly, as Naruto voice came out from the mask a little disturbed. He didn't want to look at the mask, but it was as if it was calling him, promising some kind of impossible knowledge coming from another world. Naruto turned towards Mikoto, who flinched visibly at his sudden movement.

She was scared of him. Of his mask. Of the _other_ Naruto.

She had every right to be, but he was unreasonably… saddened by her reaction.

Hatake only nodded at him, his eyes still refusing to lock onto his.

''Ok people, I'm gonna move out right after the guards outside notice you three, keep them busy while I take care of the one insides. As soon as I retrieve our target I will be joining you. Are you ready?''

All of them nodded silently, raising their hoods over their head, just before jumping out of their hiding place.

They rushed towards the enemy shinobi, who were too far away to notice them with their cloaks in the dark.

''You two go for the frontal attack, while I bypass them and place some exploding seals on the wall behind them, just how we planned. Let's do this.''

Even from the blinding speed they were advancing, they both seemed to catch onto his words, as Mikoto and Nawaki sprinted a little more, creating a reverse triangular shape, with Naruto on the back. There were ten guards guarding the main access to the prison, all of them dressed in the typical brownish armor and bandages of Sunakagure's forces.

When they finally took notice of them, the three shinobi closer to them shifted through similar hand-seals.

Powerful gusts of wind left their mouth at the same time, raising the thin layer of sand that covered the rocky ground below them. Mikoto jumped high in the air, as her head cocked back in preparation for her Katon jutsu.

'' **Katon: Gouryuuka no jutsu!** ''

From her tiger seal, several flaming fireballs shaped like a dragon head rained on the Fuuton jutsu, canceling it in a vertical tornado of flames.

From those very flames, Nawaki sprinted out rapidly, his white mask devoid of emotion whatsoever. Not even a second later, he was inside of the enemy's guard, engaging the three of them with his superior taijutsu. Another two of the guards joined the fight against Nawaki, while the other five focused on Mikoto, her sharingan glowing slightly behind her mask.

All of the soldiers were successfully distracted, as Naruto materialized via shunshin on the muddy wall of the building, the chakra in his feet keeping him in a vertical position.

He quickly took out several inscribed papers from his back pouch, pasting them on the sandy colored surface below him.

Boar. Dog. Serpent. Ram.

A couple of the guards noticed him amidst their fight, but the Oni mask froze them in position, just enough for the seals to activate.

Nawaki and Mikoto, sensing the peculiar chakra spike Naruto made them memorize, jumped away from their fights, just in time to avoid the huge explosion that shocked the front side of the building. The flying debris quickly rained on the unprepared Suna shinobi, burying them completely.

He landed just beside his teammates, All of them looking carefully for survivors through their masks.

A single boulder was raised, as one of the guards stumbled out, his right arm completely missing. Naruto noticed immediately there was absolutely no trace of blood.

He… _It_ convulsed a few time, before several long blades sprouted from its body, tearing away its shinobi outfit. It was on his fours now, its mouth opened in a single sharp movement, resulting in a clacking wooden sound.

It was one of the famous Sunakagure **Kugutsu no Jutsu**. Its now visible chakra threads leading somewhere behind the rubble.

Naruto suspected all of the guards were puppets in the first place.

Before any of them had the time to think about something, some gears in its mouth clicked loudly, releasing a powerful torrent of flames towards their direction. They split up wordlessly, each of them going for it from a different angle. However, just as Nawaki got close to the puppet, the blade on its body started rotating at high speed, making impossible for the masked boy to land a hit. It immediately twisted its head at an impossible angle, spitting a very dense flux of lighting towards Nawaki, that was only able to evade by a quick Kawarimi.

Naruto found himself next to Mikoto, an idea already forming in his mind. Nawaki had a water affinity, but the lack of said liquid in the area made powerful Suiton jutsu basically impossible. The boy's rather weaker earth manipulation was not going to be efficient against the puppet's Raiton.

Mikoto had a superb affinity for Katon, but lacked a powerful second element, and since the doll's ability to avoid close contacts, he was rather useless, as he didn't have any long raged seals ready for this kind of situation. That's why he needed the Uchiha's help.

''Can you see the puppeteer with your sharingan?''

She nodded mutely, her face focused in the direction of where Nawaki was repeatedly dodging the doll's ninjutsu.

''Go for him. I'll keep the puppet busy.''

She left quickly, rushing for the area behind the ongoing fight. Naruto put his fingers in a cross-like shape, creating three identical clones.

The puppet turned its attention towards the running Mikoto, but before it could activate its ninjutsu, Naruto, and his clones, circled the doll in a square formation, all of them had their hands in the ram sign.

'' **Fuuinjutsu: Seijou Houin!** ''

From each Naruto, a wide matrix like arrange of seals expanded on the ground, forming a full square beneath the doll. The seals glowed a deep green light, as the puppet suddenly collapsed to the ground. His breath was ragged.

It was a powerful 'Normality seal' that normally needed already prepared material to activate. It negated the activation of any normal item inside the area, such as, in this case, the chakra threads that controlled the puppet. This seal needed at least 4 people to activate, and Naruto was positive he was lasting this long only because of the larger amount of chakra he had felt within himself since the Kyuubi was sealed inside him. Even so, he didn't think he could hold for more than a couple of minutes. Nawaki ran towards one of his clones hurriedly, eager to help with something.

''Can I help you with something?''

Naruto grimaced, his coils were suffering because of the enormous influx of chakra.

''Need… chakra…''

Were the only things the real Naruto managed to choke out. Surprisingly, the masked boy immediately got behind him. His pushed palms on the older boy's back started glowing green, as Naruto felt his chakra coils losing some of the pressure they had accumulated.

''Gotta thanks Tsunade for this, someday.''

They stayed like that for a few minutes. Now the both of them were having trouble breathing regularly. From behind the fallen debris, Naruto made out an approaching outline, his heart beating loudly in anticipation.

Thankfully, a familiar milky white cloak became visible through the dust, both her right hand and mask were covered with crimson liquid.

He released the seal immediately, falling on his back as Nawaki did the same.

'' We were fighting the Sabaku no Kaijin, a B, borderline A, ranked shinobi from Sunakagure. He was already bleeding heavily when I arrived, I guess he was caught by surprise from the explosion. He did put quite the close range fight, for being an injured puppeteer…''

Her voice was flatter than her mask, her bloodied hand was trembling slightly.

''I say you all did a fantastic job.''

From the very front door of the now gone facade of the building, Hatake's proud voice caught the attention of the three of them. His hand rested on the shoulder of a really strict looking boy, no older than Naruto, whose eternal scowl and scarlet hair reminded him of his sensei back in Uzu. He was also sure he had seen those peculiar black circles around the boy's eyes before.

''Team 7, this is Rasa of the Gold Sand, the soon to be Yondaime Kazekage and our ally against the reigning one.''

* * *

 **It's 4:30 y'all, fanfictions are bad for my health. Stuff is getting interesting, stay tuned. Peace.**


	4. Chapter 4

**CH.4**

* * *

 **Takami Port,**

 **II shinobi war, Sunakagure campaign.**

They had decided to spend the rest of the evening in the same city they had planned the mission in. Nawaki was back with that cheerful attitude of his, smiling about the completed mission all the while. Mikoto, on the other hand, was quieter than usual, she had excused herself from the group as soon as they reached the city, locking herself in the hotel room they had booked before. Naruto had thought about trying to talk to her but decided ultimately to leave her a little time for herself. She had been the only one of them to deliver a brutal killing blow, after all.

Hatake and Yu had suspiciously disappeared shortly after landing, leaving the three boys by themselves.

Actually, only Naruto and his fellow redhead were left, walking silently by the humid cobbled street of the small city. Nawaki had left them for a tiny gambling house a few minutes earlier, using a simple henge in order to enter the suspicious looking wooden building.

''Care to share a drink with me?''

He waited a few seconds for Rasa's response, his scowl had not moved an inch since they met outside his previous prison.

''Sure.''

It was the first time Naruto heard him talk. Despite his stiffen appearance, his voice didn't seem to hold any kind of malice or deep hatred for the world. That sure was surprising, Naruto guessed his face was just shaped like that.

Shortly after, they sat in one of the many pubs of the western part of the city. Apart from them, only a couple more of civilians occupied the rather desolated place. They were facing each other, their eyes linked in some sort of unspoken greeting, not really caring for the flaming hot cup of sake that had been placed in front of them.

''So... you got tired of your Kage, or something?''

He scoffed soundly, his dried thin lips slightly turning upwards, amused.

''I know what you think of me, _Uzumaki Naruto._ You think I'm the typical power hungry fool that, unable to achieve the Hokage position by his own devices, decided to sell its village to the enemy, hoping to gain the position once the war was over.''

Naruto crossed his arms in front of his chest, still looking into the boy's eyes.

''Am I wrong?''

Rasa's face went back to its usual scowl, his hand reaching for the sake cup slowly. He took a small sip of the alcoholic liquid, closing his eyes all the while.

''I would have become Kazekage anyway. I was the Third's only disciple, after all. I'm nothing but a warrior, Uzumaki-san… Somebody else made me realize sensei's cruel and pointless regime, without this person I would probably still be fighting against your forces. I may know the major weak points of the village security and its leader, but… this person has the actual information that will make the population revolt against its tyrant. Unfortunately, _she_ was caught before we could escape together, and she is currently held in one of Suna's most guarded prisons…''

His hand tightened around the porcelain cup, while his eyes focused on the outside of the city, visible from the wide window of the pub. Naruto was still watching him carefully, but that very human display of emotions from before eased his suspicious on the red-head.

''I do believe the upcoming mission Hatake was talking about on the boat will be the rescue of this very same person, am I correct?''

Rasa nodded mutely, his gaze still fixed on the window.

''…And I assume you have some kind of romantic relationship with this person as well.''

He busted his fist loudly on the wooden table, splintering part of it. Naruto noted attentively, how some kind of golden powder was slowing inching on his bare forearm. He didn't need an answer, his tiny black pupils wide in anger was enough of a confirmation.

''You'll do well keeping your _assumptions_ for yourself, Uzumaki-san.''

Said boy relaxed visibly in his chair, spreading his hands in a calming demeanor.

''Don't fret Rasa. I just want you to know that if things get ugly, my first priority will be completing the mission, I'm sure you understand where I'm getting at.''

Surely enough, the golden powder on his arm retreated slowly inside his clothes. He was a capable shinobi, Naruto was sure the boy knew what the procedure was if the rescue failed.

Keep the enemy from obtaining information. _Drastically_ , if needed.

His eyes closed again, while his head bowed slightly in an apologizing manner.

The young Uzumaki grasped his cup firmly, raising it high in the air once getting the attention from the other boy.

''Cheers to the Yondaime Kazekage, then.''

Rasa smiled a tiny smile, reaching, after a moment, Naruto's cup with his own.

 **LINESTRETCHER**

The young Suna shinobi had left after several more cups of sake. The alcohol had seemed to loose him up a little bit, as he talked with Naruto about his life and about this… Karura girl of his; their target for the upcoming rescue mission. He also showed him his peculiar control of the golden powder that he acquired through a deep study of the current Kazekage's kekkei genkai.

Naruto was alone now. It was deep in the night and he was probably the only one of his team to be still outside. A couple of hours ago, he had seen a henged Nawaki running away from an angry mob of people, that were screaming something about their money.

He walked in the hotel's corridor as quietly as possible. It was a habit he had since he was little, to sneak up into places without being detected.

He was almost at his door when Hatake's muffled voice came from Mikoto's room.

''. _..Important… Naruto doesn't…I know it's…just… good work.''_

He didn't dare to move towards her room. He couldn't hear more than a few words, but the risk of being caught was too high when Hatake was around. Good thing he usually kept his chakra tuned down, or he wouldn't have known they were talking about him.

He did a mute, chakra less, backflip towards the entrance of the corridor, in order to act as if he just arrived. Surely enough, the silver-haired shinobi exited the room in that same moment, immediately locking eyes with the younger shinobi. He, of course, went for the same tiny smile of his, but it felt different this time. He wordlessly walked towards the room he shared with Rasa, disappearing gradually behind the shadows. His gaze lingered a few seconds more on the now-closed wooden door.

''Naruto!''

Came the whispered voice of the Uchiha heiress, just her head poking from the slightly open door. She was smiling tenderly at him.

''Could you… stay for a little bit? I have some trouble sleeping…''

''Okay.''

He calmly walked into her room, just a tiny orange lamp on the bed table allowed him to see his surroundings. Lacking the headband that usually kept her bangs in place, she had tied her hair in a long ponytail, showing, even more, her simple yet flawless, pale face. She was wearing a big oversized pink pajama, giving her the innocent appearance kids their age were supposed to have. He seated composedly on the wooden chair in front of her bed, while she laid down on it, her feet towards the pillow's side. Her elbows were supporting her face, as her big charcoals stared at him intensely.

He crossed his arms in front of his chest.

''Sakumo-sensei and I just talked about you, actually!''

He feigned a surprised expression at her words.

''Really?''

She giggled at his usual meager display of emotions.

''Yes! I was a little… off from tonight mission, and Sakumo-sensei asked me for a brief report. He too thinks you could make a great leader, you know?''

Was she lying? He didn't know. Her eyes were just so big and full of emotions that Naruto would think himself capable of detecting any sort of deception in them. She couldn't be lying. Naruto was widely known as a walking polygraph, after all.

''...Naruto?''

Damn. He had been spacing out. She probably said something more while his attention had been sorely on her eyes. An excuse, he needed an excuse.

''Your eyes are beautiful.''

Meh. It was cheesy, but it worked. She blushed slightly in the dim light, her gaze shifting towards the floor, as a tiny smile pulled on her lips.

''Do...Do you really think so?''

She was once again staring at him, but her eyes held something else than before, something he couldn't identify.

''I do.''

He did.

She got on her knees slowly, the light blanket bending under the pressure. She tentatively crawled towards his chair, not breaking the eye contact even for a second. He watched her carefully, as her face inched calmly towards his. What should he do? He didn't know. She was an unprecedented anomaly for his mind, as his instincts screamed for her touch, while his mind reminded him that he really didn't know anything about the girl in front of him.

He inched closer.

He really wanted to laugh at himself. Having such an all-around knowledge of what he should and shouldn't do was completely useless in front of his weak and random humanity.

A well-oiled machine programmed for failure.

She closed her eyes, her face was so close...

''Man, you guys are really loud..''

He breathed out gently, turning his head away from the still very close Mikoto. Part of him wanted to crucify Nawaki on the spot, while his more reasoning part was thankful for the additional time the young boy had given him in order to figure out the situation.

Mikoto didn't seem as troubled as he was, as she glared potently towards her brown-haired teammate, a slight blush coloring her cheeks.

Nawaki had the decency to realize he interrupted something between the two. It probably only added fuel to his mischievous side, as he grinned cheekily.

''I would say you two should get a room, but you already have one.''

His chuckling was cut short by a very quick kunai that landed on the door frame just beside his head, courtesy of Mikoto.

Her eyes were shadowed by some non-existent darkness, as the left corner of her mouth twitched slightly.

She looked terrifying.

And where the hell she was keeping that kunai?

''Get out.''

Nawaki didn't hesitate to comply with the whispered order.

She lost all of her anger insanely fast, as she turned her face towards his direction once again.

''I should go… Goodnight, Mikoto.''

She looked like she wanted to complain, but she just settled for watching him leave calmly.

Naruto exited the room mutely, his head spinning around the situation that had just happened between them. What he didn't notice was Mikoto's face, that had depleted soundlessly in an emotionless mask, only her eyes showing something. Something very similar to… _guilt._

 **LINEBENDER**

 **Sand Peninsula, 40 miles away from Sunakagure,**

 **II Shinobi war, Sunkagure campaign.**

The four of them were waiting calmly for their sensei to appear amid the ruckus of the situation. Konoha had set up a temporary war camp at the beginning of the only gulf on Kaze no Kuni's coastline. It was a narrow coast recess in the very south-east of the country, that allowed the formation of the only swamp-like environment in the entirety of the Wind Country. It was the closest access to the sea for Sunakagure, thus becoming an important leverage point to obtain. While Konoha's forces occupied the southern part, the enemy had moved all of their defenses around the only port city, situated in the north of the recess. The hidden village was not much more than 20 miles away from the port. If Konoha was able to conquer it, Sunakagure would find itself lacking of any possible access to the sea. However, their team had nothing to do with the frontal attack, as their mission was to rescue this Karura girl, that their superior confirmed was a priority one information-wielding kunoichi.

Konoha ninja were running frantically from place to place around them, orders were given and wailing injured were rapidly taken to the medical tents.

It was the chaos that followed war everywhere. For once, Naruto thanked the collected mind he had reached during his life, as the commotion around them would have been enough to cause young shinobi, such himself, to panic. He looked at Rasa that was standing by his side, he too had been given a milky-white oversized coat for the mission.

After a subtle gust of wind, Hatake appeared in front of them, his features stern and battle-ready.

''I just spoke with our intelligence. We discovered the enemy had moved our target to another location, hoping to ambush our forces once they reached the prison. A group of specialized ANBU and I are going to head towards the prison anyway, so that they will still believe we are unaware of their tactics. You four, on the other hand, will be going towards the real target, where we suppose a lesser fraction of their defense will be present. You will be leaving in five.''

The only response from the four was a mute wielding of their masks, Naruto's one as scaring as it was on their first mission. Hatake smiled encouragingly as he watched them shunshin away.

They were rushing through the thick trees that populated the swamp-like area along the recess, their target was just a few minutes away, as Rasa had explained to them earlier. Said boy was leading their group, while Naruto stayed behind, as usual, forming a rhombus-like formation.

He looked at Mikoto's masked face. They hadn't really talked about what almost happened in her room a week ago, but he was contempt the relationship they seemed to share hadn't be damaged in any way. She did keep closer to him than usual, however.

He had talked some to Nawaki as well, but his subtle efforts in finding out more about his relationship with Mito had been fruitless. He was actually a rather pleasurable presence to be around when he didn't behave like an idiot. Naruto could almost see Kushina becoming very similar to the boy in a couple of years when she would be at his current age.

They all stopped by Rasa's silent command. Surely enough, hidden between the thick foliage, a dark wooden dojo rested silently on one of the few solid patches of soil amid the numerous swamps. It had wide, white banners hanged on the front entrance, all of them showing the inked kanji for wind.

Naruto took notice of just a couple of guards that were sitting in front of the building, looking almost lazily at their surrounding.

The four of them converged quietly among themselves, even if the surveillance looked meager, they needed a plan.

''I'll be taking the front guards straight on, Mikoto and Nawaki, you need to circle the dojo and look for hidden surprises on the back. Once I'm done with the guards, I'll be launching a kunai over the building roof, so that we can break in at the same time. Naruto, you will stay behind and take action if the enemy has something planned for us.''

They all nodded. Naruto, just like his two teammates, was aware of how important this mission was for Rasa, as the Suna red-head had spent the previous week locked in his room, planning.

He couldn't see behind the boy's mask, but he was sure a strong will to succeed was hidden within that scowl of his. He got up mutely, his golden sand already taking shape behind his back.

Naruto watched attentively, as Rasa made quick work of his fellow shinobi before launching a single kunai and disappearing inside the dojo. He couldn't see anything, but he heard fighting noises coming from inside. He wasn't worried, his teammates were very much capable of taking care of themselves and Rasa was easily an A-ranked shinobi with that golden sand of his. Plus, they had the element of surprise, always a dangerous weapon in the ninja world.

He waited for ten, maybe fifteen, minutes, before a maskless Rasa exited from the front of the dojo, wrapped tightly to his side he had a short brown-haired girl, that was crying softly on his shoulder.

Shortly after, both Mikoto and Nawaki came out from the dojo, taking off their masks as well.

Mikoto was watching tenderly the two of them, her gentle smile was almost longing. She turned towards his direction, some unspoken words not entirely lost by him.

He was about to regroup with them when he caught a reflecting light coming from the east side of the forest. His eyes widened, as he pumped as much chakra as possible on his legs, jumping towards his teammates while destroying the branch he had been sitting on. A single kunai flew quickly by his side, moving almost slow motion for him, as it continued its course, aiming straight towards Mikoto...

He landed in front of the girl, startling her.

''EVERYBODY IN THE DOJO, NOW!''

All of them complied quickly, just in time for an endless amount of weapons to rain on the patch of grass they were previously standing. Once in the house, Naruto immediately took out a wide inked paper from his pouch, slamming it on the ground, before quickly sorting through hand-signs.

''They are everywhere…''

He ignored Nawaki's scared whisper behind him as he finished the needed motion for his seal to activate. He slammed his hand on the paper loudly, while it lighted up in a bright scarlet color.

'' **Fuuinjutsu: Fuuin kekkai!** ''

From the sealing matrix, a small translucent cube appeared soundlessly. It was radiating a deep scarlet light. It suddenly vibrated, as the cube started to become wider and wider. Naruto's eyes were closed in concentration, while his hand was holding the snake sign tightly. After a couple of seconds, the cube exploded outwards silently, surrounding the building completely in a cubical crimson barrier that extended endlessly towards the sky.

His breathing was ragged, as his hand trembled slightly, not moving from the snake sign.

Nobody dared to move, as they all felt a huge spike of chakra coming from all around them.

Countless, powerful gusts of wind and debris hit the barrier simultaneously, rocking the very foundations of the wooden building. The barrier didn't bulge in the slightest, as Naruto was now in a crossed leg position in order to get better focus. The enemy force tried a few more barrages, before settling for waiting all around the building.

They were surrounded. Completely. At least one-hundred, probably more, enemy ninjas had cornered their position.

''We are dead. It's over…''

Nawaki's voice was broken, it was clear the boy was barely holding tears.

''No we are not. Hatake will realize this was a trap and he will be here with reinforcements.''

Even Rasa's strong statement held doubt in it. How couldn't it? Hatake's objective was two days away from their position, they were alone.

''Rasa, couldn't you use your sand somehow?''

The meek voice of the girl they had just rescued called out timidly, she was still clinging onto the red-head. Rasa shook his head softly, his fist clenching loudly in frustration.

''No, there is not enough natural resources in the area for something of this caliber. I have a feeling they had planned all of this, it's too well organized to be a custom defense maneuver.''

Nawaki scoffed bitterly at this. His hands were clutching his head in resignation.

''See? We are all dead.''

Rasa, greatly angered now, was about to lunge at the younger boy, but was stopped by Naruto's quiet voice.

''If you all don't shut up, I will personally use every ounce of your chakra just to change the color of this fucking barrier to a nice blue marine, am I clear?''

Everybody in the room fell quiet at the boy's chilling tone. They couldn't see his face from his lotus position, but he still managed to get their unquestioning attention.

''This is my most powerful barrier, the Shinigami himself would have trouble passing through. I had prepared it beforehand. It will hold for at least 12 hours, plenty of time to figure something out. Nobody will die here.''

His speech was so simple and strong, that even Nawaki, for a moment, felt stupid for worrying. They knew that 12 hours wouldn't be enough for reinforcements to arrive, but it was still something to at least approach everything in a calmer demeanor.

''Naruto…Your leg!''

Mikoto half-scream broke the somewhat tranquil atmosphere the group had reached. Surely enough, the upper part of a kunai was sticking out from Naruto's left tight. His faded black shinobi pants were darkened by a small pool of his own blood.

Nawaki immediately rushed for the older boy, as his hands started glowing a bright green. He slowly removed the blade, while Naruto flinched visibly from his position.

''Fuck.''

When he held the bloodied kunai in the air, some other purplish liquid dripped on the wooden floor beneath them. Mikoto gasped loudly, as she got closer to her teammates. It was poison. Suna's poison, one of the most lethal liquids known in the elemental nation. Nawaki quickly closed the wound with his chakra, that was the most he could do in this situation. His jaw was clenched.

Their sensei had explained to them the dangers of fighting Suna's shinobi; avoiding to be cut was imperative, as their poison was able to kill even the strongest shinobi in a matter of hours. Only a really advanced medic nin would be able to intervene.

''It's okay Nawaki. Go lay down and keep your chakra for later, you will need it.''

Naruto somewhat resigned voice made the younger boy even more frustrated with himself, his efforts only stopping upon seeing the red-head rarely shown smile. Nawaki was watching him intently, amazement and utmost respect were clear in his steely colored pupils. He quickly left Naruto's side before the older boy could notice his soon to be arriving tears. Mikoto was still a step away from him. Her face was strangely stoic, but her hands were trembling madly.

''You took that for me… Why…''

Her voice was barely a whisper.

''Mikoto, listen…''

He didn't have the need to finish, as the girl laid down on the wooden floor, resting her head on his good leg. If his hands hadn't been in this position, he would have liked to run them gently through her raven locks.

''It should have been me.''

He didn't answer, as he let her hug his leg tightly. Her hold comforted him. He didn't even know how, facing certain death, he was being this calm. Self-preservation, he supposed. Naruto didn't want to say this out loud, but he was a goner. He could already feel the sweat forming rapidly on his forehead, as the soon to be approaching fever was heating his body. He thought about his life, his accomplishments… He wasn't satisfied. He thought about what little he remembered of his parents, that had died together after a failed seal experimentation… It wasn't enough. He thought about his sensei and his belief that shinobi, because of their sins, didn't deserve to live past thirty years of age, he thought about his missions, his leader, his council… Kushina.

He needed to do something. He couldn't leave his teammates to die, he couldn't fail… He never did.

His mind was spinning, searching within himself for something that could get them out from this hell. In a couple of hours he wouldn't be even able to stand, he needed something quick, a miracle.

A…big, angry miracle.

He smirked.

If he was destined to die here, he will be going out with a bang. It was time to pay a visit to the grouchy fox.

''Nawaki.''

Said boy got up immediately upon hearing his name, his instincts screaming for something to do.

''Inside the pouch beside me, there is a red colored scroll, take it.''

He obliged rapidly, his hands reaching heatedly for the brownish sack. He took the scroll out, looking back at Naruto for instructions.

''Now, open the scroll and release the seal.''

Nawaki nodded, as his hands formed the ram sign once the scroll was opened. Even Mikoto, who didn't seem to be leaving his leg anytime soon, looked at the puff of smoke with interest. All of them were a little confused when an exact replica of Naruto puffed into existence. Wordlessly, the clone took the real Naruto's position, his hands shifting in the same snake sign.

Naruto released his hands but didn't move, as he breathed in sharply.

He caressed Mikoto's cheek mutely, her charcoal eyes were looking at him for answers.

He locked eyes with every single person in the room.

Everybody was staring at him like he had gone mad, but they had a little hope that he could really get them out from this mess.

''I already told you, you are not gonna die today.''

He left his right hand on Mikoto's cheek, it fit perfectly, with his thumb on her temple and his index finger reaching the side of her neck, while his left formed a one-handed ram seal, connecting him to his chakra. He closed his eyes, the reality around him disappearing behind the rhythmic pattern of his well-controlled breathing. He felt his head spinning towards a non-existent hole, before almost physically landing in front of something.

The same wooden door.

He liked what he recently assumed was his mindscape. It was all so calm, and far away from everything… He shook his head quickly. He noted that the intangible walls around him were leaking a dark purple viscose liquid. The poison was reaching his heart, he had to be quick.

He pushed the door open quietly, the appearance of the majestic beast way less shocking than his first time here.

 **''Thirsty for power, human?''**

His voice was just as flooring as the first time, his feral grin almost mocking him about his soon to be death.

''Yes.''

He laughed. A laugh that could have moved mountains, barely different from a powerful roar.

 **''And say, human, what makes you think I will be willing to share my power with the likes of you?''**

He got closer to the beast, his hand tentatively reaching in his direction. His fingers were stopped by some kind of invisible barrier, that rippled loudly around his touch. It was a powerful seal, but Naruto had something in mind.

''How angry are you, Kyuubi?''

 **''Get me out of this seal, and I will show it to you.''**

''I have a better idea…''

A single seal on the top of his wrist lightened up in a peaceful yellow, as the kanji for each element appeared on each of his left-hand fingertips. He playing a dangerous game, but he didn't have much choice.

''…I will take part of your chakra, part of your _conscience_ , and I will let you go wild on those annoying shinobi outside. You get to crush some human bones, and I will get my teammates free. You wouldn't want the jinchuuriki of the famed nine-tails dying anonymously from some stupid poison, way before he could make a name for himself and his Bijuu, would you?''

Appealing to the beast's bloodthirst and pride was a long shot, but it was the only thing he could think of. Naruto was almost ecstatic, as he felt the beast pondering his idea.

 **''If I agree, I want this to happen again.''**

He was striking a deal with the devil, but the pros were just too many. He could still feel the ghost feeling of Mikoto face in his hand. He nodded mutely at the beast.

''Do we an agreement, then?''

He laughed again, as he was now standing on his fours. He looked even bigger like this.

 **''I'm not gonna lie, human, this will be painful.''**

Naruto slammed his engraved hand on the barrier, creating a wide enough breach for the huge, furred paw of the beast to reach him. Their bodies touched, and Naruto immediately felt his vile chakra boiling in his veins. It was painful, but he was feeling invincible. In a blinding flash, his mindscape disappeared, as his eyes opened again.

He looked down, at Mikoto. It was harder and harder to resist the unreasonable hate that was pulsing through his body. He got up wordlessly, letting the girl to calmly sit on her knees.

''As soon as I have the enemy attention, you have to run away. Do not come back for any reason. Rasa, do you think you will have enough sand to cover them?''

The red-head flinched back upon seeing his companion red slitted pupils.

''Y-yes, I think so. But what about yourself?''

He grinned a feral grin, his elongated canines gleaming under the crimson light of the barrier coming from the window.

''I will be the distraction.''

Everybody wanted to complain at once, but a look in those angry, powerful eyes told them everything they needed to know. None of them knew what had happened to the red-head, but he wasn't the same person from before. Nawaki approached him cautiously, holding his oni mask towards his direction-

''N-Naruto, at least take your mask with you…''

He didn't answer. Instead, his body exploded in a crimson flame of potent chakra, the skin around his eyes darkening visibly, while the bubbling red aura around him took shape behind his back, forming three appendices that looked exactly like tails. Everybody stepped back, as the evil chakra felt corrosive at the very proximity.

''I won't need it. I want them to know who had massacred them.''

The clone that had been holding the barrier disappeared, as the real Naruto sprinted for the dojo entrance, grinning madly all the while.

* * *

 **Mamma mia che cliffhanger! What is sweet Mikoto hiding? Will Naruto be able to fight off hundreds of shinobi? Will the Cavs win the finals? Will people realize socialism doesn't work? Will Italy finally get a stable government? Find out (almost) everything in the next chapter! Cheers.**


	5. Chapter 5

**Hey guys, I want to apologize now for the previous (and following) chapters spelling errors and my dubious grammar. I just realized I completely failed to spell 'Sunagakure' right several times and other stuff like this... The fact is that I can only write in my free time between my job, college and getting wasted with my friends and, because of this, I cannot afford an attentive revision of my work. Moreover, English is not my first language. Hope y'all can forgive little old me. Cheers!**

 **CH.5**

* * *

 **Sand Peninsula's swamps,**

 **II Shinobi war, Sunagakure campaign.**

The moist grass decayed under his feet; the potent chakra frizzled loudly around him as if the very environment feared its presence. He was breathing hard in anticipation, as he felt copious amounts of blood rushing to his limbs. He could almost feel his coils screaming painfully at the tsunami of chakra they were receiving. Suna shinobi and kunoichi were all around him, they were hundreds.

He could almost feel their smug sense of superiority; they thought it was going to be an easy victory.

He grinned widely. They were about to find out how sweet a sudden death really was and he wanted to drink their soon to be coming waves of terror. Two seals lightened up with pure power, the burning Kanji for fire was spreading a warm red on the entirety of his left palm, while the kanji for wind wrapped his right hand in a translucent white patina.

He didn't say a single word. They didn't deserve any.

He disappeared from the place he was standing before in a crimson flash, confusing, for a second, the front lines of the small army he was facing. A young kunoichi in her late teens was the first body he touched. She had sand-colored hair and her dark, black eyes widened immediately upon barely noticing Naruto inside her guard. He just touched her, on her belly, as her body slightly arched against the sudden push. A single kanji appeared on the bandages that were covering her upper body. He disappeared again, his tails further increasing his speed. In just a matter of seconds, way before the enemy had the time to realize what he was doing, he had already touched a dozen of them.

He landed from his sprint in front of a middle-aged shinobi, his red pupils locking immediately on the man greenish ones. He smirked.

His right hand raised calmly in the ram sign, his words chilling the very core of the older ninja.

 **''Fuuka Houin: Katon.''**

Not even a second later, every single body he had touched exploded in flames, the red devilish color dancing stunningly with their screams of pain. Before his opponents had the time to even rush to help their comrades, he jumped behind the frozen form of the older shinobi that was previously in front of him. One of his three chakra tails impaled the man right into his stomach, while his now clawed right hand tightened around his bandaged head, digging deep into his skin.

 **''Fuuka Houin: Fuuton.''**

From the lifeless man's mouth, a powerful gust of wind reached the still burning corpses, widening the flames and creating a rapidly growing inferno among the trees that were surrounding them. Naruto turned the man's head slowly, pumping his almost endless chakra in the fuuton seal all the while so that a continuous ring of fire would expand from all around him. He turned and turned until the shinobi's neck tore from the enormous force the Kyuubi's chakra was applying through his hand. His body fell mutely on the ground, while his severed head was still held tightly by the smirking boy. The majority of the ninjas that were close by had been incinerated, while the few survivors smartly decided to regroup with the others. Once they were over the initial shock, the Suna ninjas angrily switched to an attacking formation. Several puppets rushed at him simultaneously, their blades rotating dangerously while dripping purplish poison.

He carefully avoided all of them with his heightened reflexes, occasionally crashing their wooden body with the help of his chakra tails. Suddenly, he felt several scrolls releasing at once, surrounding him in a sea of metal, as weapons of all sorts hanged dangerously in the air. Many Suna shinobi sorted quickly through similar hand-seals, releasing various torrents of wind. All of the weapons rushed rapidly at him, carried by the fuuton jutstu. He had previously eliminated a good chunk of their forces, but there were still countless ninjas all around him, leaving no absolute room to dodge. He closed his eyes.

He felt the raw power emanating from inside his gut, he felt the hate and the bloodthirst, he felt the pain… He felt _something_ taking shape in every single chakra coil on his back.

Just a fraction before the weapons could reach him, he screamed, as nine completely scarlet chains exploded from his now uncovered back, the sheer power from the release deflecting every single piece of metal that was launched towards him. They swayed calmly behind him, their hypnotic rhythm made them look like some kind of metallic tails. They were completely blood red, their pointy edges wrapped in an almost peaceful orange hue. The red chakra cloak had now disappeared from around his body, as the chains seemed to be absorbing every single ounce of it. He could feel them getting more powerful with every passing second, and he felt his already tiny control on them slipping away. He didn't care. They were thirsty for blood, and he was happy to comply. They exploded wordlessly, dividing, once in the air, in dozens tinier identical chains, looking for human flesh almost on their own. Naruto watched in morbid fascination as they ripped through the numerous puppets, as explosion of wood and metal followed the path of the demoniac chains. They didn't stop. They hunted every single shinobi, as none of them was able to fend them off. The Suna forces tried everything they could, but their weapons were shredded to pieces as the chains flew harmlessly through every single one of their defensive jutsu. The swamp colored red, as dozens upon dozens of ninjas were impaled mercilessly. They screamed messily, many of them trying to run away or hide under the murky waters, but no avail. The massacre played out in a magnificent chorus of terror, as Naruto slitted pupils memorized every single look of petrified suffering from the enemy shinobi. Men, women, boys, girls… Many so young, probably their first time on the battlefield; many so old, probably their last mission for their village. They had all met their deaths at Naruto hand. He couldn't feel pity, or mercy. The only thing he could feel was hate, anger and an utter desire to destroy everything in his path.

He looked at his hand. The skin was burning away quickly, his receding pale skin was being eaten by a blistered, sickening dark red layer of dead skin.

The world fell quiet. He raised his gaze once again. Not a single one of the countless bodies that littered the darkened swamp seemed to have a single spark of life left in them. All of his chains retreated back inside his body mutely, their hunger seemingly satisfied. The burning emotions he was feeling before depleted simultaneously in a rigid apathy, as he could feel his body about to collapse. He heard somebody crying softly from behind him, where he noticed, upon turning, a bloodied Suna kunoichi, that couldn't be much younger than himself. She was uninjured, but her hands were grasping her short dark hair frantically, her closed eyes releasing endless waves of tears.

He got closer, kneeing before the girl in front of him.

''Look at me.''

She cried even harder upon hearing his voice, as she refused to open her eyes. She felt a gentle touch on her cheek, way too gentle to be _that monster's_ touch. She looked at him soundlessly, her crying stopping shortly after. She was almost in a daze as she looked at those calm blue eyes, way too different from before to belong to the same person. He was looking at her intently, the aftermath of his actions was slowly crawling into his conscience. She had a slim, slightly upturned nose; just like Mikoto. He brushed some of her bloodied black hair behind her ear, as the girl kept looking at him wide-eyed.

''What is your name?''

He kept stroking the girl cheek gently, drying what was left of her tears.

''C-Chizue…''

He smiled gently at her. In her weakened mental state, she was actually pushing her face against his palm, thirsty for any kind of sincere consolation.

''That's a beautiful name, Chizue. It literally means that you will have a long life… Go back to your village, now. Tell them what happened here...so it won't happen again. All of this shouldn't have been necessary.''

He removed his hand from the girl's face, as she shakily got up, looking straight at him all the while. She disappeared immediately in a wild sprint, leaving Naruto alone in the middle of his massacre. He would have to deal with his conscience sooner or later, he knew it. He was just too tired, now. He looked again at his burned arm, before falling back on the decayed grass. His body felt heavy and he rejoiced of the sweet soon to be arriving numbness, as the world around him lost completely its color.

 **Sand Peninsula, Konoha war camp,**

 **II Shinobi war, Sunagakure campaign.**

He jolted awake, his lungs frantically grasping for air like he hadn't been breathing for days. He felt something soft beneath his body, a bed probably. The room was bright, way too bright, as his eyes searched for something that didn't look like a bright, blurry spot of light. His breathing was still erratic.

''Calm down, Naruto, you are safe now.''

He heard Hatake's voice from somewhere beside him, as he closed his eyes, trying, not without effort, to stabilize his breathing. When he re-opened them, he recognized his bare upper body, half-sitting in a plain looking white bed. His left arm was covered in several creamy bandages that were running up to his elbow. He shifted his attention towards Hatake, whose features were still a little blurry.

''Where am I? What happened?''

Naruto wasn't sure, but it was very likely his sensei was smiling at him from his seated position.

''You are back in the Konoha war camp on the Sand peninsula, some ANBU had found you laying not very far from the wooden dojo… From their reports, you weren't the only there, but just the only one still alive.''

His head screamed for a few seconds, as the memories of his battle came back rushing all at once. It wasn't a dream, he really had massacred brutally hundreds of people.

''It seems that somebody was able to escape, as your actions had been diligently detailed inside Suna newest bingo book… Here, check it yourself.''

He felt a heavy, flexible book landing on his lap, as his hands quickly rushed for the section dedicated to Konoha's shinobi. There he was. They had used the same picture he had while he was still in Uzu, but nothing else had remained the same. His eyes widened almost comically upon reading the S rank mention, inscribed under the nickname Suna had decided to give him.

''… _The Red Devil of Konoha, also known as Naruto Uzumaki_ , _previously an Uzushiogakure shinobi, was_ c _apable of defeating over a hundred capable Suna shinobi single handedly. His ability in Fuuinjutsu is unprecedented and he is capable of summoning several chains made purely of chakra, an ability only wielded before by a few Uzumaki shinobi that are now either dead or retired. He was described to possess a singular chakra cloak, which extremities suspiciously looked like tails. The Third Kazekage of Sunagakure theorized Naruto Uzumaki is Konoha's newly appointed jinchuuriki…''_

He didn't know what to think. It sure was the highest acknowledgment a shinobi could achieve apart from becoming a Kage, but all those people…

In a single day, he had probably killed more shinobi than in his entire ninja career. The worst part was the enjoyment he felt while he was massacring them. He held the book tightly, part of him hoped it would vanish completely.

''So?''

He looked back at the older man, his face had not moved an inch ever since they started talking.

''I butchered all of them as if they were animals… At some point, I even saw them starting to retreat, but I didn't stop. Why didn't I stop…?''

Hatake got closer as he rested his left hand on the younger boy's shoulder.

''You saved your teammates and completed the mission, that is all that counts. Best case scenario, all of you would have been killed. If Suna was to capture a sharingan wielder kunoichi like Mikoto alive… I don't have to get graphic, do I?''

He shook his head. Naruto didn't even want to think about what could have happened to Mikoto. He looked at his bandaged arm instead, wondering why it was the only part of his body that had been treated. He flexed his fingers tentatively, not feeling anything different from before.

''Why is my arm bandaged?''

Hatake, whose hand was still on his shoulder, soured immediately at this, almost flinching when looking at the arm.

''I'm not sure you really want to know… I am not aware of the technicalities, but it was bad enough that the village decided to repay your unprecedented bravery by asking Tsunade Senju to have a look at it. She will be arriving here tomorrow. Tsunade is one of the elemental nation most talented medic, I am sure she will be able to help with whatever is happening to your arm.''

He fought down the urge to just rip the whole bandage, it probably wouldn't help his situation. The truth was that, if they felt the need to take someone as Tsunade Senju away from her duties, his arm was probably way more fucked up than he thought.

''If you feel like walking, I'm sure your teammates would love to have a word with you. Mikoto only left your side because I ordered her. She gets quite protective when she wants to.''

He smiled a half smile. He probably condemned himself to an eternity of suffering in the afterlife, but at least he was able to protect everyone. He followed Hatake out of the room quietly, only to find a nervous looking Nawaki waiting nervously outside the medical tents. His face lightened up in relief upon seeing his red-haired teammate, as he immediately got close to the two.

''I'm glad you are okay Naruto. Seeing you half dead with that… _arm…_ Oh, well it doesn't matter now. Here, come with me, I'll take you to Mikoto's tent…''

The boy forcefully grasped his good forearm, taking him rapidly away from Hatake. The walked quietly among the numerous creamy white tents that littered Konoha's camp.

He felt the stare of every single ninja, medic, and civilian around him. Some were looking at him in amazement, like he was some sort of hero, while others eyed him way more subtly, their faces had many layers of suspicion pasted on them. Nawaki had been walking quietly all the way, always looking forward, not sparing him a glance. They stopped several meters from a plain looking tent that had the Uchiha crest on its front entrance. He was about to walk towards the tent when Nawaki iron grip stilled him in position.

''So… You are the new Jinchuuriki of the nine tails, eh?''

The boys face strangely stoic for somebody like him, that always had his heart on his sleeve.

''Are you angry at me for what happened to your grandmother?''

He scoffed slightly, releasing his grip on Naruto's forearm.

''Mito baa-chan told me everything several weeks before of the ritual… The village doesn't even know that I was aware of her jinchuuriki status. She… said a complicated game of chess was about to begin. I didn't know what she was talking about, and I still don't but… She always told me to think with my own head or I wouldn't be able to change anything even as the Hokage. My point is… You saved my life two days ago. You are your own person and not just the village's pawn. I won't let you live a sad life like the one my grandmother had. I got your back… Naruto.''

He smiled a true smile. His fist was raised in Naruto direction, as he waited for the red-head to accept his offer of friendship. Naruto was surprised by the boy's rarely shown display of logical thinking, but he was even more surprised by his dedication to a fairer future, not a simple task even for the strongest of men. He bumped his own fist against Nawaki's, smiling at the younger boy.

''I think you will make a great Hokage, Nawaki.''

He grinned madly like the idiot that he was, before pointing cheekily to Mikoto's tent.

''Come on now, go see your girlfriend. So while you two slurp each other mouths, I'll be getting stronger than you, jinchuuriki or not!''

He sagely decided to disappear before Naruto could use his **''SILENCER!''**.

He was in front of her tent now. He wondered whether he should knock… But how could he knock on a tent? Maybe he should-

''Naruto?''

Well then. He opened the tent flaps wordlessly, as he lowered his head in order to fit through the entrance. She was sitting cross-legged on her futon. She was wearing that pink kimono of hers, but this time she didn't have either the greyish body armor and her sword.

She looked at him mutely for several seconds, as he was still standing up, not really knowing what to do.

''Hey…?''

She bolted up rapidly, her body moving towards his quicker than he could follow. She wrapped her arms around him tightly, as if he could disappear any minute. He closed the girl into his arms quietly, her head buried deep in the crook of his neck. They stayed like that for maybe a few minutes, but he wasn't complaining. He could feel her ragged breath on his neck, and while her skin was as cold as usual, her contact seemed to warm up his very soul.

She distanced herself wordlessly, her charcoals were analyzing him attentively as if she was looking for some kind of damage on his body.

SLAP.

His face twisted rapidly to his left, as her lightning-quick backhand slapped the shit out of him.

He was still a little dazed when she grasped his jaw with both of her hands, dragging him down for a long, deep kiss on the lips. It wasn't his first kiss, but it was his _real_ first kiss. Any doubt he had on the girl disappeared on that moment, as there was no absolute way she could feign the emotions she shared in that kiss. Their faces were mere centimeters apart, as her hands still held his in position. She was staring at him with those eyes of her, her pink thin lips were quivering from the emotional aftermath she seemed to go through.

''Naruto… I…''

She looked like she wanted to tell him something important, but she was being held back by herself at the same time. Her lips stopped trembling, as she closed her eyes in order to regain her composure. She locked her eyes with his, her black orbs held a strong determination.

''Would you stay with me tonight?… Please?''

Her face screamed the typical Uchiha self-confidence, but Naruto could see the almost desperation in her eyes. He mutely took her hand, leading her towards the futon on the ground. He laid down, letting her rest her head on his chest, while she hugged her body tightly.

For the first time in his life, he wasn't going to sleep alone.

* * *

 **Probably changing to 'M' after this chapter.**


End file.
